dreams are reincarnation
by Foggy guy
Summary: After Nagisa(Acchan), Kanata(Takamina) and Yuko graduated, and Chieri disappeared, akb0048 falls apart. The next generations of members, unable to succeed the most popular members, are weak and almost never hold guerilla e entertainment ban is re-imposed on many planets. However three girls decide to take it on themselves to revive entertainment, joining the 89th generation
1. Chapter 1

Hi people I've never written an akb0048 fanfic before, but I hope I've done fine. The first chapter is kinda stereotypical but it will get more interesting as the story moves on, and please keep reading to see what will happen to the girls. Please enjoy, and review to tell me what you think and what I can improve! Thanks! :)

Chapter 1-Akb0048

-3 years ago-

"Wow… they're so cool."

The three girls were huddled together in the dark of Hinata's bedroom, their eyes intently watching a screen on which teenage girls were singing and dancing in front of a cheering audience. Bullets and missiles were fired at them, but they sang on bravely, agilely dodging the attacks.

"Look, this is Acchan the 14th!" Hinata pointed at the pink-haired girl on the center of the screen. "And this is the center nova Chieri! Oh, and these two are Takamina the 6th and Yuko the 9th!" She pointed at the three girls beside Acchan with long blue hair, spiky red hair and an orange side ponytail respectively.

"Wow, they're so brave! So this is akb0048?" Rin gasped, eyes shining.

"Well… it was like that."

"What do you mean? It's still around, isn't it?" Shiya asked confusedly.

"It's still around, yes, but this video was from 7 years ago. Acchan, Takamina and Yuko have all graduated, and Chieri's disappeared as a center nova. Almost all the members then have graduated now."

"But didn't you say 00 has a succession system? So there should be a new generation by now!"

"Yes, but for some reason no one has succeeded the most popular members like Acchan, Yuko, Mariko, Yukirin etc. for the whole seven years, and no one's succeeded the original captain Takamina either. Currently Yuihan the 8th is the captain. The current 0048 has really fallen apart. The members are weak in battle and they almost never hold guerilla lives. Their level of radiance and amount of kirara also can't be compared to the previous generation. The number of Wota is so few it's almost extinct, and their theater is rarely full when they hold lives. DES has imposed the entertainment ban on many of the planets which weren't under the ban originally, since 00 can't move people's hearts anymore. The amount of understudy applicants is decreasing like crazy, and I heard that the 5 understudies of the recent 86th generation were the only ones that applied."

"Oh… that's awful…" Rin breathed.

"You know what? I'm going to apply as an understudy when I turn 14! I want to succeed Acchan and become the one who will revive akb0048!" Hinata smiled at the girls.

"But that's three years later! You're really going to do something against the law? It could land you in jail!" Shiya exclaimed.

"Hinata, I'm in." Rin spoke. "I want to sing these beautiful songs beside Hinata and Shiya!"

"Eh? Me too? But I'm bad at this, and I'll bet really nervous on stage!"

-now-

Shiya watched the sea of stars from the spaceship's window. She couldn't believe where she was now. A day ago she had been a normal schoolgirl in a classroom in Sebustar, and now she was on a spaceship with her two friends, going to join akb0048 on Akibastar. She wondered if the three of them were the only ones joining the 89th generation. The 88th generation only had two members, so this was an improvement already.

It was almost time for landing already. She could feel the spaceship starting to dip, and soon the sight of Akibastar's surface could be seen. It was a wreckage, as the city of Akibastar was built underground. She wondered what living underground was like.

"Shiya, we're arriving!" Rin rushed into the room. It was funny how much Rin'd grown in these few years. She was originally similar in height to her, but now Rin's even taller than many adults. It would be funny if she succeeded one of the shorter members.

The girls got off the spaceship among numerous other passengers. After checking out with their IDs, they stepped out into the arrival hall. She was told that a member would come to pick them up.

A girl with orange shoulder-length hair and a pink heart clip was standing there confusedly, looking around for someone. It wasn't hard to recognize her as Paruru the 9th. The girls walked over to her, and a smile lit up her face. "Oh, it's the new understudies, isn't it? Welcome! What are your names?"

"I'm Yumeno Hinata. Nice to meet you!"

"My name's Hoshikawa Rin."

"I'm Tsukuyomi Shiya."

"I'm Shimazaki Haruka the 9th. Nice to meet you!" Paruru replied and started walking away. "Since you're basically the only ones who applied, you're automatically understudies without auditioning." She sighed. "Let's hurry back to the dorms. Kitarie's introducing the place to the other new understudy."

"So there's another new understudy?" Rin asked, following Paruru through the streets.

"Yes. She arrived earlier today. She lives on Akibastar, so she didn't take the spaceship with you. Her name is Itano Tomoko."

"Itano? So she's a daughter of the family that has produced all the past Tomochins?"

"Yes, that's right. We're hoping she can succeed Tomochin too. We're kind of running out of successors, you know?" Paruru admitted. As the girls walked, they reached a beautifully designed building with a lawn in front.

"These are the dorms. You'll be living here from now on." As Paruru began climbing the stairs to the door, her foot slipped and she fell flat on her face. "Ow!"

"Paruru-san, are you okay?" Hinata rushed to help her up.

"I'm fine. I just can't stop being clumsy no matter how much I try!" the successor complained, climbing the rest of the stairs and opening the door. "Now I'll show you in. Your new life as an idol starts now." She smiled, beckoning to the three younger girls.

Well that's the first chapter! Thanks for reading! The next chapters will probably be longer and more interesting. Please look forward. :D


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2—The other understudy

"Now that you know how to get round the place, I'll give you a while to settle down. Come down to the canteen for dinner at seven," Paruru told the three girls, putting her hand over her mouth to stifle a yawn. "I'm going to take a nap. See you in half an hour's time." She walked away, waving, leaving the three girls in their room. Even though the successor had said that they could have one room each, the girls decided to go for a shared room.

The room had two pairs of bunk beds, and they'd decided to invite the other understudy to share a room with them if she wanted. Rin dragged her suitcase over to her bed and lay on it.

"This is so cool!" She exclaimed. Hinata had gone to check out the balcony, while Shiya was carefully unpacking her belongings. Those two were a weird combination. Shiya was levelheaded and practical, as well as kinda shy, while Hinata was cute, energetic and a daydreamer. However an annoying fact was that the two of were ever so tidy and organized, while she herself had a tendency to leave everything lying around in a mess. She sighed and started unpacking her belongings as tidily as possible.

Suddenly the door was blasted open. A girl stood at the doorway. "Hi people!" she said, waving at them cheerfully. The girl was wearing a t-shirt, jeans and trainers, with all her hair tucked into a boyish cap on her head. She looked friendly and full of energy.

"Um…hi! Who are you?" Rin asked warily.

"Oops, sorry for not introducing myself." The girl shrugged. "Name's Tomoko. Nice to meet you. I heard the other 89th generation understudies arrived, so I came to say hi. May I come in?"

"Sure!" Rin stepped back to let her in. "We even prepared a bunk for you, in case you wanted to share our room—WAIT. You're Tomoko? Itano Tomoko?"

"Yep I am. Is it so hard to believe?" the girl smiled, revealing a pointed tooth.

"But aren't all the Itano girls trained to be like Tomochin? How come...?"

"You have no idea how annoying Mom was. Always saying 'this isn't what Tomochin would wear', 'that isn't what Tomochin would say', blah blah blah. But I'm me, and they can't change who I am." The girl tried to smile in Tomochin's signature petite-mouth look, and then made a face. "Ugh, my lips feel all crooked."

Rin was already getting to like the girl. She seemed the kind who'd be quite fun to hang out with. "I'm Hoshikawa Rin, by the way." She told the girl.

The four girls spent the half hour chatting and getting to know each other. It was agreed that Tomoko would share their room, and they talked about Tomoko's mom, Itano Tomomi the 10th, as well as their life on Sebustar.

"Hey people, it's about time to have dinner," Rin reminded them. Those two couldn't even be trusted to remember to go down to dinner, if they felt like continuing chatting, and she didn't want their new friend to starve.

The four girls sat at a canteen table with the food they'd received. It seemed fine compared to their old school's canteen food, but Rin could still see some members picking at their dinner. Only Paruru seemed to be enjoying her food a lot, asking for seconds mere instants after she'd taken her first serving.

"The food here used to be really delicious, until Papa Cook retired a few years back. The new cook has been improving though," a friendly voice sounded beside them. Rin started and looked to her right. A girl around seventeen or eighteen, with dark blue hair tied up in a bun, had sat down beside her holding her dinner tray. "I'm Kitahara Rie the 11th, by the way. Can I join your table?"

"Of course," Hinata replied enthusiastically, moving over to make more room. After the girls introduced themselves and they started conversing in small talk, another girl stood up from the large table where most of the successors were sitting.

"As all of you are here now, let me introduce our newest members." The girl, looking about nineteen or twenty, had shoulder-length dark green hair with a braided strand to the side. She beckoned for the understudies to stand up, smiling. "These four girls are our 89th generation understudies, Itano Tomoko, Yumeno Hinata, Hoshikwa Rin and Tsukuyomi Shiya. They'll be part of us from today onwards." She faced the understudies. "I'm the 8th Yokoyama Yui, the captain of akb0048. Welcome to the 00 family!" Her speech was followed by a large round of applause.

"Well, I think Paruru, Kitarie and Yuihan seem nice," Hinata remarked to the others, skipping along the corridor back towards their room.

"So are Annin, Ricchan and Miorin. I met them earlier today." Tomoko replied, following the lively girl.

"Hi everyone!" They turned at the sudden voice behind them. The owner of the voice was a girl about fifteen, with long wavy chocolate hair in low twintails and emerald eyes. Beside her was another girl, about the same age, with short dark purple hair and topaz eyes behind glasses.

"I'm Suzukawa Rinka and this is Yuzuki Fujitako. We're the 88th generation understudies!" The first girl introduced them both. The second girl, Fujitako, nodded politely.

"Nice to meet ya!" Tomoko replied good-naturedly with a wave.

"I'm captain of the understudies, appointed by Suzuko-san yesterday! I'm in the room at the very end of this corridor, so if you need any help, feel free to approach me. We'll begin lessons together starting tomorrow. They start at 8 am in the morning, so please don't be late, or you'll get shouted at by sensei! Oh, and Fujinee's dancing is super good, you'll surely get impressed tomorrow!"

"Hey Rinka, I'm not that good," Fujitako protested. "These new understudies are probably better than me."

"No way, you're even better than the successors!" Rinka retorted, turning to look at the four new girls. "And Fujinee even plays the piano for the vocal training. Isn't she great! Anyway see you tomorrow!" She waved, dragging Fujitako down the corridor.

"I suppose those two would be pretty interesting to be with," Shiya commented with a faint smile.

"Ya sure. I think our time here will be very interesting indeed."Rinka replied smiling.

So this is the 2nd chapter. Thanks for the reviews and if you have anything you want to tell me please feel free! Thanks! :) Oh, and I think I'm going to speed things up a bit from now. PLease look forward. :)


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

"Oh god!" Hinata exclaimed as she once again failed to shoot the target. "I'm simply no good at this!"

"Well, it's not like I'm doing any better!" Rin complained. Being bad at PE, the two girls were still having a hard time in combat training.

"Hey people, let's take a five-minute break for now." Rinka announced. The girls put down their practice rifles and grabbed their water bottles.

"You know, you should just be patient and try a few more times. It isn't that hard," Fujitako told the panting Hinata, sitting down on the bench beside her. It had been a month since they'd become 0048 members, and they'd been trained in singing, dancing as well as combat. Rin had a great voice, Shiya was a natural at dancing and Tomoko just seemed to be good at almost anything they tried. It must be in the genes, Hinata thought. She herself wasn't particularly talented at anything, and she worried she was lagging behind the other understudies.

"So, do you girls have someone you want to succeed in mind?" Rinka asked, putting down her water bottle. "I and Fujitako actually want to succeed Miichan and Sashi. But it's been a year and neither of us has succeeded anyone."

"Well, I was thinking maybe, I dunno, Mariko would be nice," Shiya replied.

"But you aren't anything like the original Mariko at all!" Rin protested. "Well neither was the 8th Mariko, on second thought. I heard she was oozing with pheromones!"

"Then what about you?" Shiya asked Rin, who looked down thoughtfully.

"Well I'm not sure. I guess anyone would be fine. Maybe someone like Jurina." She turned to look at Tomoko and Hinata. "What about you guys?"

"Dunno. I just don't think it'll be Tomochin." Tomoko replied, tucking her wavy long hair into the collar of her tshirt. "You, Hinata?"

"Um…well…it's always been my dream to succeed Acchan…but it's not like I'll ever become good enough."

"Don't worry Hinata! If anyone succeeds Acchan it'll be you!" Rin replied, putting her hand on Hinata's shoulder.

"Exactly! There's no way I'd let you give up so easily!" Shiya added.

"Wow, you want to succeed Acchan? That's really cool!" Tomoko remarked.

"Thanks, everyone!" It was reassuring but also kinda scary hearing her friends say that.

"It's about time to get back to practice. We still have to move on to the micsaber today," Rinka reminded the girls.

Suzuko, the general manager of Akb0048 and previously a member of the legendary No Name, walked into the understudies' training room. All six girls stopped practising and focused their eyes on her.

"Girls, I have an announcement today. The 89th generation understudies will debut in the 00 theater on Akibastar in 2 weeks." She projected a document from her ipad-like gadget for the girls to see." Here is the setlist for the live. You'd better start learning it soon."

"Oh my god a live?! We'll be performing in front of hundreds of audience!" Rin gasped. "I can't believe it's so soon!"

"At least it's not a guerilla live. Yet." Shiya sighed in relief. "We'd die if it was!"

"Hey people look! We get to be center for one song each!"

Hinata scanned the castlist for her song._ Nagisa no Cherry._ The only solo song of the castlist. Her heart skipped a beat. Why her? Surely any one of the other three were better than her. Well yes, they'd each gotten to be center of a unit song, but a solo song? That was really a large task. Yet she had to do well, if she wanted her dream to come true. This was only the first step.

"Lemon no Toshigoro…then Manatsu no Christmas Rose…Nagisa no Cherry…Arashi no Yoru ni wa…and finally Blue Rose. It's a pretty challenging setlist. You've got to start practice now!" Fukuhara-sensei, who'd previously been a 00 member and a successor of Akicha, told the girls.

'_arienai_

_aoi BARA mitai na_

_itsuka no yoru_

_kiseki nara_

_ichido dake yo_

_Blue rose'_

Rin tried her best to keep up with the rhythm as she danced. She could see that the rest of the girls were also having a hard time. Tomoko's tshirt was drenched in sweat as she put her everything into the practice. It was 7.30 am in the morning, two days until the live, and they were now practicing harder than ever.

"Tomoko, put more power into your dance! You're the center!" Fukuhara sensei instructed.

"Okay!" Tomoko's dance became even more unbelievable. She really was, in terms of skill, on another level. Her kirara shone a few times as bright as the other three's dimly glowing ones. Rin reckoned Tomoko, though a new understudy, was better than some successors.

"That's all for this song. You can have a three-minute break before we move on to Arashi no Yoru ni wa. Hinata, Rin, you two really need to work on your dancing a bit." The dance teacher said as Blue Rose came to an end.

"I'm sorry! I-" Rin was cut off by Shiya's alarmed shout. Looking in her direction, she saw that Tomoko had collapsed on the floor. She gasped and immediately rushed to the collapsed girl's side.

"She's burning! She probably has a fever!" Hinata exclaimed, putting her hand on Tomoko's forehead.

"A fever…" Fukuhara sensei looked surprised. "Where's Suzuko?"

"She went out earlier today, but she didn't tell us where or why." Rin replied.

"She went out?" Suddenly it was as if some thought struck her. "She might've gone to the temple…the kirara could be showing something…" She turned back to Rin. "Rin, go to inform Yuihan about this. The rest of you, today's lessons are cancelled. Take Tomoko back to her room."

"O…okay!" Rin ran out of the practice room, back to the dorms. She knew the successors were probably having breakfast at this time.

She rushed into the canteen, panting. All eyes turned onto her, surprised. Seeing the girl in such a hurry, Yuihan stood up from the table and walked over to her.

"What's the matter? Aren't you supposed to be having a dance lesson?" She asked the younger girl.

"Tomoko passed out…with a fever…in the middle of the lesson…sensei told me to tell you." The girl replied, still catching her breath.

"I understand. Don't worry, I'll inform Suzuko-san." Yuihan replied calmly. "You should stay with Tomoko. Be prepared for possible change in the debut live's plan."

"Oh, okay…" Rin replied arkwardly. "I'll, um, go back?"

"Hey Yuihan, what did Rin talk to you about?" Mocchi the 10th asked curiously.

"Tomoko's got a fever." The word 'fever' had been ringing a bell in the captain's mind. "Hey, do you think it could be the fever of succession?"

"So soon? That's great! We're kind of short on members, you know." Myao commented excitedly. " Who do you think she's succeed?"

"We were really hoping she'd succeed Tomochin, but she's nothing like the original Tomochin, is she?" Paruru replied. "If it's really the fever of succession…"

"True. I think her soul would be closer to someone else." Kitarie remarked.

"Well, she could still succeed someone great! We'll just have to wait and see." Miorin reassured everyone.

"Suzuko-san! What's the matter?" Hinata asked. The three had been sent for by the general manager once she'd gotten back.

"The debut live for the understudies is cancelled. The next concert will be featuring the successors instead."

"What?!"

So basically that's it! Since I'm having exams, it'll probably be some time before I upload more. Next chapter will be Tomoko succession. Please look forward, and feel free to comment and teach me how to improve!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

"What?! Seriously?" Rin exclaimed. "But why?" She wasn't that confident about performing anyway, but to have all that hard practice for almost nothing was quite disappointing.

"Is it something about Tomoko?" Hinata asked. It made sense that the live would at least be rescheduled if Tomoko's condition was really bad. She hoped their new friend was okay.

"Well yes," Suzuko replied, smiling. "Next live will be Tomoko's succession."

"Succession?!" Hinata gasped. " So soon?! But it hasn't even been a month!"

"Wow, Tomoko must be really talented eve compared to previous kenkyusei." Shiya remarked. "It's been long since someone became a successor so fast, isn't it?"

"Who is she succeeding?" Rin asked curiously.

"We don't know yet. I'll be taking her to the temple, and I'll find out when she wakes from her fever of succession, while you girls, along with everyone else, will only know at the concert." Suzuko told her. "Feel free to celebrate for your friend, but don't relax too much. You are still expected to perform Lemon no Toshigoro for the opening act. Rinka will fill in for Tomoko's part, and Fujitako will be required to stand in as a successor. Notify them for me if you see them."

Rinka bumped into the three newer understudies as she was coming back in from getting some fresh air. She'd heard that Tomoko passed out with a fever earlier that day, and hoped the girl was okay.

"Hey people, how's Tomoko? Is she okay?" She asked concernedly, stopping in her tracks. Oddly they were all smiling, not a trace of worry on their faces.

"Rinka-senpai, Tomoko's becoming a successor!" Hinata relayed to the understudies' captain excitedly.

"Drop the 'senapi' please—but never mind that! Wow, Tomoko's succeeding someone so fast?! Congrats! Maybe you lot will all surpass us really soon! I'm going to tell Fujitako about this right now!" Rinka replied, equally excited as Hinata.

"Oh, speaking of that, Suzuko-san wants you to perform Lemon no Toshigoro with us in Tomoko's stead in the following live, and Fujitako to stand in as a successor." Shiya informed the older girl.

"Sure, I'll go tell her. You guys work hard too!" Rinka walked away, all smiles, turning the corner. As she got to the room at the end of the corridor, the room she shared with Fujitako, she walked inside and flung herself onto her bed.

Fujitako was in front of her computer as she often was, searching for various kinds of information. She was an IT genius who could access basically anything with a computer, and apparently back home she used to help the Wota receive signals of entertainment broadcasted.

"Tomoko's becoming a successor."

Fujitako turned to look at Rinka. "Well, tell the girls congratulations." Her smile didn't reach her eyes.

"It's just… I don't know…" Rinka turned, looking at the posters of various generations of Minegishi Minami on her wall. She saw out of the corner of her eye that Fujitako was doing the same, staring at her posters of Sashi. The previous one was really sweet, with her fluffy pink hair. Aida Orine, part of No Name. Despite being totally different from the original Sashihara, she succeeded that name in less than a year, when she was only thirteen.

"We're almost sixteen. We don't really have that much time left." Fujitako remarked.

"Ya." Rinka sighed. The two lapsed into an awkward silence.

"I'm such a terrible person. As a senior and understudy captain I should be guiding our kouhai. But I can't help…you know…feeling like I'm a failure." Rinka's voice quivered slightly as she broke the silence. "Maybe we should just quit?"

"Don't worry. You're really good at performing and leading too. Your chance will come soon." Fujitako reassured her friend. "Maybe we'll be like the 75th generation. They were awesome, weren't they? But it was two whole years before they could become successors!"

"Well fine." Rinka put on a half-smile. "Anyway, we'd better work hard. We can't lose to our newest rivals, can we? Speaking of that, Suzuko-san wants you to stand in for a successor at Tomoko's succession, while I'm going to perform with the other understudies. You'd better practice! I don't want us to blow Tomoko's show."

Shiya's heart pounded rapidly in her chest as she stood backstage with the other understudies. She was wearing a frilly striped vermillion dress with matching shoes and white gloves and socks, the standard outfit for Lemon no Toshigoro. The audience had already been seated outside, and the live was going to begin soon.

The audience was huge. The theater could seat more than a thousand, and in a succession live it was usually almost full. Seeing as the understudy in question was a descendant of the Itano family, the expectations were high, and all the tickets had been sold out at once. Shiya's hands were shaking as she stood there waiting. She'd never been the outgoing type, and she was really scared of talking in front of people. Back at school she started hyperventilating whenever she had to speak or perform in front of an audience.

"Don't worry, it won't go wrong." She felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Rinka smiling at her. "I know you're nervous, but it'll be all right. Everyone's had these moments. We'll be with you, won't we? You look really cute in this dress, by the way." Rinka was wearing the yellow version of the dress, which really suited her.

"Guys, we have to do really well for Tomoko's sake." Rin walked towards them, wearing the blue version that matched her eyes.

"Yes, let's try our best!" Hinata agreed. Her pink dress actually went quite well with her dark red shoulder-length curls.

"Fujitako! Where are you? Come over here!" Rinka called. A few moments later, Fujitako came running towards them, wearing the red successors' uniform.

"Okay guys, let's form a circle,"Rinka directed. The five girls moved as the successors usually did, into a circle where their hands were locked. "Okay, I suck at this." she muttered.

"Always grateful, precise, and calm—we're following our dreams! akb0048 kenkyusei!"

With that, the four girls started out onto stage, Fujitako thumbs-upping them. The audience clapped and cheered as they saw the girls step onstage.

"Good evening everyone! Welcome to the succession live of Itano Tomoko, 89th generation understudy!" Rinka called. "I'm Suzukawa Rinka, understudy captain, and on stage with me I have the three other members of the 89th generation!"

"I'm Yumeno Hinata. Nice to meet you!"

"I'm Hoshikawa Rin. Please support me!"

"I'm Tsukuyomi Shiya. Yoroshikuonegaishimasu."

"We are the zenza girls for today. Please listen to Lemon no Toshigoro."

The audience clapped at their introductions, but it was clear they weren't really into the performance. They, like the girls, were eager to know who Tomoko was succeeding.

_kyoushitsu no madobe wa _

_hizashi no sunadokei_

_anata wo matte iru _

_jikan ga kage ni naru_

As Rinka and Hinata sang, Shiya noticed that two kirara had flocked towards Hinata, and were glowing like a spotlight. She seemed to be outshining Rinka, who was also putting on an impressive performance. The two girls were at least as radiant as successors. It made Rin and her, who were swaying from side to side to the music, seem to have no presence at all.

_GURAUNDO wo hashiru _

_YUNIFOOMU sugata wo_

_KAATEN ni kakurete _

_setsunaku nagameteta_

Shiya stepped forward, Rin by her side. Her heart skipped a bit as she realized that her voice was so quiet she almost couldn't hear herself. Rin was trying to sing louder to make up for it, but the single kirara which was floating in front of them only glowed dimly. The rest of the kirara seemed to flock to Hinata and Rinka. She finished her part and stepped back, feeling terrible. She was determined to do better for Tomoko.

_aoi remon hitotsu_

_tenohira de tsutsunde_

_agetai no_

_sou watashi no subete_

_aoi remon sotto_

_wakasugiru kajitsu wa_

_modokashii kono toshigoro_

The girls finished the song and bowed to the audience. Shiya sighed in relief. She'd managed to sing louder in the chorus, and to her relief a kirara had started glowing in her prescence. Hinata had, obviously, the greatest radiance, but at least she did okay.

"Thank you for listening! Now, the time has come! Who do you think Tomoko-chan is succeeding?" Rinka called to the audience, which had started to get heated up. "We'll pass the time to Tomoko!"

"Everyone, thanks for coming to my succession live." Tomoko's lively voice came from backstage as the four girls left the stage. "As a member of the Itano family, I was trained to be like the original Itano Tomomi, in hopes that I will succeed her when I join akb0048. And indeed I love singing and dancing, and am now a 00 member. However, I think this is going to be a BIG surprise for everyone!"

Excited whispers went through the crowd as the audience conversed with each other.

"I am honored to share the same surname as an original member, and I am grateful towards my parents for giving me the name Tomoko, 'friendly child'. With this gratitude in my heart, today, I will take on a new name. I will become… the 11th Miyazawa Sae!"

Well, sorry for not updating for a month or so, but with exams and the partying period afterwards, I didn't write anything. I hope you liked this chapter. Thanks for the reviews, and please feel free to review and make suggestions. Thanks!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

"Mom! Dad!" The girl dashed backstage immediately once the concert ended. Two women, a man and a little girl were waiting there for her. They all had the same distinct features, and it was not hard to recognize them as the Itano family.

Tomoko ran towards the couple in front. Honestly she was a bit nervous about her parents' reaction towards her succession, and the fact that she'd cut her hair short was not helping it. She hoped they didn't get too mad at her.

"Tomoko…no, Sae," Tomoka smiled gently at her daughter. "Congratulations on your succession."

"Your new hairstyle suits you." Tomoyo remarked warmly at her niece. Tomoko looked warily from one face to another. Surprisingly no one seemed to be mad at her.

"Hey, Tomoko nee-chan, why are you Miyawasa? Aren't you supposed to be Tomochin?" The four-year-old girl, who'd been tugging at Tomoyo's sleeve, asked confusedly. Tomoko looked at her little cousin awkwardly.

"It's okay, we're fine with the outcome. To us you're our daughter before you're anyone else, and we're very proud of you." Tomoka broke the arkward silence. "That was a really fast succession too. We've got no reason not to be happy"

"But aren't you…shouldn't you be at least a bit mad? I mean, what with you training me since I was small and stuff…"

"It doesn't matter. At the end of the day, everyone is different," Tomoyo responded kindly. "Maybe it's time for us to do away with the book of Tomomi."

"I quite agree with you. Why do we have to force someone else's personality on our girls anyway?" Tomoka replied. "It's not like I never wished to be someone else at times."

"It's getting late. It's almost time for us to go home now. Work hard, Tomoko. We'll come visit soon." Tomoko's father spoke, placing his hand on his daughter's shoulder. Everyone hugged her, congratulating her again and promising to visit soon, and left.

Tomoko stood backstage, still not believing her luck. Her family was actually okay with her succession. She never considered that to be the case. Letting out a relieved sigh, she turned and left, lighthearted and a bit giddy.

Rin stood on the balcony of her dorm room, staring at the twilight sky. Her parents and schoolmates were somewhere out there, among the stars. She did not regret coming to Akibastar to join 0048, but there were still moments when she was overcome with homesickness.

The events of the evening came back to her like a replayed video. She saw the impressive performance that Tomoko, now Sae, had put on, but the thing that tugged at her mind was Hinata's first public performance. The kirara had simply flocked to her, and she had easily been the most radiant among the four.

Hinata's dancing was, to her, only mediocre, and Shiya was easily better than her. In terms of singing, she had always bested Hinata, and Rinka clearly had the most confident demeanor. Hinata seemed so ordinary and nothing special. So why did the kirara choose her?

Rin knew that it was terribly mean of her to think these thoughts of her friend, but she couldn't help it. She couldn't help but remember that her and Shiya's presence had totally been drowned out by Hinata's radiance, and she'd seemed completely alone on stage, the sole shining star. She knew Hinata's dream had always been to succeed Acchan, but now she couldn't imagine what would happen to her if that came true. Hinata would always be in the spotlight, and she would always be somewhere down below, clapping or backing her up. She could no longer be by her friend's side, and instead could only gaze upon her radiance from down there.

Hinata's smile and her warm encouragements throughout the years flashed before her eyes, and she felt really guilty for thinking these thoughts. But how could she ever continue to be have Hinata by her side, if she was to choose such a lonely path? Rin was frustrated ,and she decided not to think of this anymore.

"Rin, why are you outside?" Hinata's voice sounded behind her, making her jump.

"Nothing! Just daydreaming. Or is it called nightdreaming? It isn't really day, you know." Rin replied cheerfully, a smile on her face.

"Oh come on, Rin." Hinata rolled her eyes. "Come inside."

Suzuko walked towards the temple briskly. Sometimes she still couldn't believe that she had now become the general manager of akb0048. She had always wanted to join the management, but being chosen by Sensei-sensei was uncalled for. She still remembered her days as part of No Name like yesterday, but it was all different now.

Yet ever since the new kenkyusei had joined up, Sensei-sensei hadn't stopped murmuring, and he totally surprised everyone with choosing Tomoko as a successor so quickly. Perhaps the four new girls were the turning point for 0048. She quickened her footsteps, passing through the bamboo forest in front of the temple.

Recently, he had been reported to be murmuring about the three others. She had no idea what he had in store for them, but it could be another piece of surprising news. She hurried in to find out more about this.

"Hey girls, I've got some news." Suzuko walked into the crowded cafeteria, where girls were having their breakfast. Immediately all eyes turned to her, Yuihan shaking a dozing Paruru awake.

"The next handshake event will be one week later."

The room erupted in conversation, girls chattering about their outfits or what they would say to their fans. But everyone gasped to hear the second announcement.

"A new 3-member unit will be formed, and it will consist of the three remaining understudies from the 89th generation."

"What?!" Hinata exclaimed. "Us?!"

"No way that's happening." Shiya whispered nervously.

"It's just a joke, right?" Rin asked unsurely.

"It's true, and you'll be meeting fans as a unit at the handshake next week."

The three girls stared at each other, still shocked, as the successors discussed among themselves about the explosive news.

"All right, you can have a three-minute break now. Shiya, please focus. You're not doing as well as you should."

Shiya leaned on the wall of the dance studio, gasping for breath. She had just messed up the whole routine of Koisuru Fortune Cookie, the easiest dance in all of 0048's setlist. Normally, she wasn't that bad at dancing, but she had just made a whole mess and mixed up the dance moves, even stumbling and almost falling flat on her face eventually. She felt terrible, but she couldn't calm down.

Ever since Suzuko-san had announced the formation of the unit, she hadn't been able to concentrate on any training. Her heart beat rapidly whenever she thought of it, and she couldn't even eat well. None of her friends or seniors could manage to console her and calm her down.

Originally, she had only agreed to join 0048 because it consisted of a large group of girls performing together, and there would always be someone in front of her to look to. She had, unlike Hinata, never aspired to be a Center of any kind, and she now felt terrified thinking of all eyes on the three of them. Hinata had shone so brightly in the first performance that everyone was impressed. Rin had a strong and beautiful voice that made her stand out. But she had nothing. She would only hinder her two friends in their success as idols.

"Okay, now we'll continue. I expect better performance than just now, especially for you, Shiya." The teacher announced.

Shiya sighed, desperately trying to focus on the dance routine, as she got into position.

Hi guys! Sorry for not updating in a century, but school life is busy and I'm also working on a couple of other new stories. I hope that I'll be able to update soon. Thanks for all the reviews and feel free to make suggestions for improvement! Thanks for reading! :D

p.s. I am currently stuck in thinking of a name for an organisation of sth like mercenary magi for a fanfic of fate/apocrypha. Could anyone help me pls? Thanks!


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